The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1887-01-26
INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION.
Iron Making In the New South-A
Dangerous Rival to Pennsyiya-
mia
Atlanta Constitution.

Atlanta Constitution.
The American public Is now witnessing
and the industrial public closely watching
one Of the most remarkable revolutions ever
effected In time OF peace. 1t is the practical
transfer Of the most important mechanical
industry from one section Of this country
to the other. To specify 1t is the deporta-
tion Of Iron making from Pennsylvania to
the South
These are extreme words, but they are de-
liberately written. We have seen the grain
growing centre Of the country shifted to the
West; we have seen the york packing indus
try fit from Cincinnati to Chicago and Kan
sas City; we have seen Southern cotton mills
underselling New England In American mar
kets, and challenging China and South
America. In the expansion and swift read
iustment Of the affairs Of this republic, many
changes have been wrought, but none so re-
markable as that which makes the subject Of
this letter.
1t is not claimed that the iron furnaces Of
Pennsylvania will be torn down and hurried
to Alabama. 1t is certain. however, that
Birmingham can to-day make the price for
iron on the American continent; that Penn
sylvania's supremacy is gone forever; that
iron making will decrease In that State, and
will increase with swiftness In Alabama and
| Tennessee. In his remarkable book ON "rhe
South" Col Mcclure Of the Philadelphia
| Times admits this, and gives Pennsylvania
warning. Now for the facts
Iron can be made cheaper in Birmingham
than in Pennsylvania by at least 50 ton.
From this fact there Is no appeal-against IL
1 Al. 4 l. -
iron that costs si4 a ton in the Pennsylvania
furnaces can be made at 50 ton at the Blr-
mingham furnaces. The iron makers Of Bir-
mingham are now refusing to tell how cheap
| ly iron can be made. They have ceased to
regard Pennsylvania as a rival and look
| with apprehension TO England with the tar
| 1T Oh iron removed. During the late depres-
| sion, when the Reading railroad was bank
rupted by the utter prostration OF iron and
coal Industries in Pennsylvania, and Penn
sylvania furnaces were driven out Of blast
every Alabama furnace worked night and
day at profit. and the capacity OF the State
was increased from 60,0O0 to 10000 tons, and
her coal product from 10000 to 100000 tons.
Here was a test under cruel conditions.
Alabama triumphed. while Pennsylvania
languished.
How does Alabsma get this advantage
| Let us see.
'sYou are viewing" said Mr.. Joseph +.
| Johnston, President of the Sloss Coal and
| Iron Company, "a sight that can be seen no
where else on earth" We were standing on
the mountain Of the Sloss Iron Company,
| which is scanned through and through with
| exhaustless veins Of red hematite ore. The
valley below us was limestone. The noun
tain across contained the Pratt mines. which
| give exhaustless quantities Of the best ccal
Here is the formula: Standing on noun
tain of iron, looking across limestone val-
ley TO a mountain OF coal, the three elements
for makingir iron are in juxtapOsitlOn. This
Is an advantage that can be hardly exagger-
ated.
''rhis advantage Of iuxtaposition," said
Col. j. w. Johnston, President Of the GeOr-
| gia Pacific road, and organizer Of the Sloss
| Iron and Coal company, rs second to anoth-
| er advantage not generally discussed. IL Is
| the single ownership Of the three elements
| that make iron. Suppose there Is rise Of
| two dollars a ton In iron. At the North the
iron maker gets small benefit from It. The
| iron ore around Lake Michigan or elsewhere
| Immediately advances, the price OF limestone
| goes up, and the profit Is divided between
| three owners. In the South every dollar Of
limestone and the coal are owned BY one
company, mined at first cost, and each con-
tributes to the general profit. Another adj
vantage Is In our labor. Mr.. Sloss says that
the negro labor Is as good as any less liable
| to strikes and more efficient
A disadvantage under which Birmingham
must suffer Is transportation. The Pennsyl-
| vania markets have largely home market
4
| has undersOld Pennsylvania In Boston and
/ New York. The Alabama furnaces will find
| the freight problem lessened by increasing
home markets. Birmingham now makes
| $50 tons Of iron day, one third Of which
amount is consumed within the limits Of Bir-
| mingham. and new factories, f0undries and
| bridge works are projected daily. A rolling
| mill Tor sheet iron uses hundred tons OF ore
| day. A foundry for making chains sends
to louisville for the bar iron. having first
i shipped the ore TO Louisville, shipped the
| bar iron back, made II into chains and shipped
| the chains back TO Louisville. Here are
/ three freights that would be wiped out by
| the establishment of a rolling mill In Bir-
mingham 10 supply such iron as the chain
| works need. Already two immense stove
| works have been moved from New York to
i Tennessee and Alabama. These are the
| forerunners Of others. The surrounding
| towns offer increasing markets for Alabama
/ iron. Atlanta doubled her industries In the
i past five years. Chattanooga Is growing
| with great rapidity, and the home market
will be apt to take even third OF the In
| creased output Of the Alabama furnaces.
The facilities for transportation are rapidly
improving Five lines OF railroad connecting
/ Birmingham with KaLsas City, with the
| head waters of the Tennessee, with the Mis-
| sissppi, with the Gulf, and with the ocean
/ by the directest possible routes, are now be-
| ing pushed ahead as fast as men and money
can CO. The opening Of the river to Mobile
/ will give waterways almost from the fur
i mace doors, and the establishment Of city
and wharveS at Sheffield, Ala, Will leave
Birmingham less than three hours travel by
| rail from st. Louis.
Is there capital for this development?
/ Capital galore. 1t is hard to keep ii out.
Towns spring up as If by magic. Streets are
| thronged with investors. 1t would take
freight train day to haul the money into
| Birmingham sent every twenty-four hours
| for investment IL IL were put into silver dol
| lars. Not less than SlO,OO0,O00 Is invested In
| loan and building companies In Birmingham,
L
| seldom Ii ever witnessed In city building In
this country. The same Is true Of Decatur,
Anniston, Sheffield Ensley, South Pittsburg,
Pessemev, and a score Of other cities. The
most marvellous growth, however, In Bir-
| mingham will be the iron furnaces. There
| are now eleven furnaces in birmingham, with
a capacity Of $50 tons; There are under con
tract to be finished this year twelve addl-
tional furnaces, with capacity OF 500 tons
| so that within twelve months the daily out
put will be trebled There are under contract
in Alabama, Tennessee and Georgia thirty
eight new furnaces, against twenty-five now
in operation. IL would be impossible to
enumerate in one letter the kindred indus
tries that will follow these. The Pratt Coal
Company will increase its output from 1900
tons per day TO 5000 tons per day, and the
Coalburg Company from 800 tons to 1900
tons. The Louisville and Nashville read
takes from Birmingham 45O cars Of freight
per day.
The situation may be summarized thus:
The Southern furnaces are absolutely max
ing iron at four OF five dollars a ton less than
| Pennsylvania furnaces. The advantages un-
der which they do this are permanent, and
can neither be taken from them nor conferred
on Pennsylvania The difference In favor Of
the South will be emphasized instead OF de-
creased as her freight facilities increase, her
methods become better, and her capital
larger. These facts are ineOntrOverttble. As
to what result they will bring the future
must determine. The Southern iron makers
now claim that much Of the Increase in
Southern furnaces will be met by decrease
In Northern furnaces which are forced out
Of blast.